We’re not going to get a docuseries in the style of “The Last Dance” on the 2018-19 Golden State Warriors, but there is still tons of intrigue about the final season for one of the best teams in NBA history. One moment that was looked back on as the potential beginning of the end was when Kevin Durant and Draymond Green had a blow up early in the season, which featured Green challenging Durant during a game by telling him “we don’t need you” and “leave.”
The importance of that moment in Durant’s eventual decision to leave is unknown, but it was certainly a huge deal when it happened. In recent days, Green has discussed that group’s final year together, first in an appearance on WRTS: After Party where he discussed the circus around last season.
More recently, Green appeared on All The Smoke with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. As candid as ever, the All-Star forward made it clear that if Durant wanted to stick around, and Green was the problem, all Durant needed to do was make one phone call and Green would have been sent out.
Draymond Green says if KD really wanted to be in Golden State all he would’ve had to do is ask for Draymond to be traded. https://t.co/n8N5L7dgaW
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) April 23, 2020
“Being that he’s a great friend and all of that, this is f*cking Kevin Durant we’re talking about,” Green said. “Like, yeah, I’ve done great things here, but let me tell you this: I know [Warriors GM] Bob [Myers], and if it was such a big deal with Kevin being here and me being here, if Kevin really wanted to be here, all he would’ve done is went and said to Bob, like, ‘Yeah, I’ll stay, but Draymond gotta go.’ And guess what? Bob Myers woulda called me and said, ‘Draymond, I love you, and I won’t trade you to a bad team, but where do you wanna go, cause I’ll help you get to where you wanna go.’ And so, to try to point the finger, say, ‘Oh man, I left because of him,’ like, get the f*ck outta here.”
Green stressed that while their relationship may not be the same as it once was, he still has plenty of love for Durant. Still, Green believes that Durant is the kind of player who has the power to influence these kind of decisions, and finds it telling that he did not do this as a condition to stay in the Bay.
“You ain’t leaving cause of me,” Green said. “You’re f*cking Kevin Durant. If you wanted to be here, I woulda been out if I was the issue. I woulda been long gone. And guess who woulda understood that? I understand that, I understand the business of basketball, I understand how this sh*t works. If Kevin Durant wanna be somewhere, and he don’t want me here, I’m out.”
More than anything, Green seems to be pushing back against a narrative than making any swipes at Durant in the brutally honest way that has become one of his trademarks. Still, this is our latest look inside an absolutely fascinating basketball team, one that accomplished a ton but felt like it could have accomplished much more.
